Kara Hayward Steps Into The Pages Of ‘The Blessed’

Young actress Kara Hayward is fresh off her success in the quirky Moonrise Kingdom – she received rave reviews for her portrayal of precocious runaway Suzy Bishop, and acted alongside movie veterans Bruce Willis, Bill Murray and Frances McDormand.

But this busy 13-year-old isn’t just sitting around basking in her new stardom. She’s about to debut her next project – narrating the audiobook version of Tonya Hurley’s new YA novel, The Blessed. Kara talked exclusively with Celebrity Teen Scoop about the book, her upcoming movie roles, and her shortlist of who she’d like to share the screen with next.

Celebrity Teen Scoop:Now you’ll be narrating the audiobook of The Blessed – how did this partnership with author Tonya Hurley come about?Kara: I was lucky enough to be chosen for this project by Tonya after she saw Moonrise Kingdom. It has been so wonderful to work with her and I’m so grateful for the opportunity I was given.

CTS:What appealed to you about the story line?Kara: I thought the entire book was well-written, and I loved the unexpected twists in the plot and suspense. I felt really invested in the characters and I felt like it’s one of those books you could read over and over and never tire of. Once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down!

CTS:How do you balance your work life with that of the life of a 13-year-old?Kara: I don’t feel like I’m really balancing anything. It all seems to work itself out, fortunately, and I feel like acting is a part of my life that I really enjoy.

CTS:What other projects are you working on now?Kara: Right now I have three other projects lined up called The Sisterhood of Night, Mixtape and The Last Good Car. The Sisterhood of Night is a fabulous story, and received the Tribeca Film Festival’s Creative Promise in Screenwriting award. Mixtape is about a young girl who finds a mixtape made by her mother, who died when she was very young. Excited by the mystery, she sets out to find the obscure songs in order to learn more about her mother. The Last Good Car is a funny, quirky comedy starring Jason Ritter and Mark Webber. I can’t wait to start working on them, because they are all such amazing stories.

CTS:Who would you most like to co-star with?Kara: That’s a tough question. There are so many fantastic actors out there and I’d be excited to work with any one of them, but a few are Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron, Emma Watson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Johnny Depp, Reese Witherspoon, and that’s just the beginning of my list!